Moving On Up

February 2005

Dakota Community Church

Moving On Up!

Introduction:

Like the Jefferson’s of the 70”s sitcom fame it is time for some of us, especially some of the youth to move on up in the Kingdom of God.

At some point in time each of us must make the decision to stop coming to church to be fed and to instead come prepared to feed others.

You may feel that you cannot make a difference, that you are to insignificant, that no one would want what you have to offer.

In fact that is a lie from the pit of hell.

Illustration:

I awoke early, as I often did, just before sunrise, to walk by the ocean’s edge and greet the new day.

As I moved through the morning dawn, I focused on a faint, far away motion.

I saw a youth, bending and reaching and flailing arms, dancing on the beach, no doubt in celebration of the perfect day soon to begin.

As I approached, I realized that the youth was not dancing to the bay, but rather bending to sift through the debris left by the night’s tide, stopping now and then to pick up starfish and then standing, to heave it back into the sea.

I asked the youth the purpose of the effort. "The tide has washed the starfish onto the beach and they cannot return to the sea by themselves," the youth replied. "When the sun rises, they will die, unless I throw them back into the sea."

As the youth explained, I surveyed the vast expanse of beach, stretching in both directions beyond eyesight. Starfish littered the shore in numbers beyond calculation. The hopelessness of the youth’s plan became clear to me and I countered, "But there are more starfish on this beach than you can ever save before the sun is up. Surely you cannot expect to make a difference."

The youth paused briefly to consider my words, bent to pick up a starfish and threw it as far as possible. Turning to me he simply said,

"I made a difference to that ONE."

You have the power to make an eternal difference!

How?

1. Make the choice to grow up spiritually.

This is not something that happens with the passing of time!

Not Spiritually: I have met many very old baby Christians.

Not naturally: I have friends from hockey who still think the Jr. High drunken foolishness is cool stuff.

Hebrews 5: 8-14

Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

Think about the stages of life.

(a.) Newborn

They are totally helpless, - They are cute, - They can say and do anything, - Every need is looked after (Instant Prayer answers).

(b.) Infant or childhood.

They start to learn the basics, - They feed themselves with help, - They potty train (Clean own messes), - Tie shoes and other basic necessities.

(c.) The teen years.

They gradually become responsible for themselves, - They get a job, find a purpose, - They begin to earn authority like driving the car; they start to make small contributions to the family, pay board.

(d.) Adulthood.

They take on responsibility for others, - they reproduce.

In this stage you cannot expect to be treated like you were in the younger stages.

My Dad no longer gets excited when I tie my shoes, it is just expected behavior.

Have you noticed that no one gets excited when you attend Church regularly, if you miss a service there is no great concern – You are an adult Christian – it is like tying your shoes, just expected behavior.

The mature focus on others not themselves!

2. Make God your only source.

This is not some silly cliché.

People fail to progress in their walks with God when they depend on sources other than Him for their fulfillment in life.

- A husband or wife can not satisfy all your needs.

- A ministry job cannot do it.

- Children and family activity cannot do it.

- A new house, car, furniture boat, cottage or vacation cannot do it.